CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago Blackhawks forward Frank Nazar left Saturday's 5-3 loss to St. Louis after he was hit in the face by a puck.
Nazar dropped his stick and discarded his gloves in frustration as he made his way off the ice after the play occurred about 3 1/2 minutes into the second period.
“I think Frank's going to be all right,” coach Jeff Blashill said. “He had to get some dental work done, but I think he'll be all right.”
The last-place Blackhawks (28-38-14) have two games left in the season.
The 22-year-old Nazar was sidelined for a month after he broke his jaw when he was hit in the face by a puck during a 6-4 loss at Ottawa on Dec. 20. He returned on Jan. 22 at Carolina.
Nazar, a first-round pick in the 2022 draft, has 15 goals and 26 assists in 64 games in his third NHL season. He agreed to a $46.2 million, seven-year extension with Chicago in August.
Forward Andrew Mangiapane departed in the third period after crashing hard into the net with 9:17 left. Blashill said Mangiapane is day to day.
Ethan Del Mastro was scratched because of an unspecified injury. With Del Mastro sidelined, veteran forward Sam Lafferty was inserted into the lineup as a defenseman.
“(Lafferty) has played D with our team in practice a decent amount in the last three, four weeks,” Blashill said. “(Lafferty) has been committed to this team all year. ... He played D in college, so it's not like he's foreign to it. I mean he actually knows our systems probably as good as anybody.”
New York Islanders head coach Peter DeBoer looks on during the third period against the Ottawa Senators at UBS Arena, Saturday, April 11, 2026, in Elmont, NY.
Technically, the Islanders were not eliminated from playoff contention on Saturday with a 3-0 defeat to the Senators.
But the first word in that sentence is doing some heavy lifting.
The only pathway for the Islanders now is to win their last two games — against Montreal on Sunday and Carolina on Tuesday — and get significant help.
Head coach Peter DeBoer looks on during the third period of the Islanders’ 3-0 loss to the Senators at UBS Arena on April 11, 2026. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST
For starters, the Flyers need to lose their final two game against Carolina on Monday and Montreal on Tuesday. The Islanders also were passed by both Columbus and Washington, which both were victorious late in the day.
So they need not only the Flyers to lose, but also the Blue Jackets and Capitals.
“We gotta control what we can control,” captain Anders Lee said. “Let’s have a good response tomorrow. Win our games. We’re gonna need some help but all we can do now, this game’s over, unfortunately. We just gotta respond with our own game.”
Had the Islanders beaten Ottawa, they would have suddenly felt quite good about their playoff chances. With the Flyers not playing until later Saturday, the Isles would have gotten back into a spot for at least a few hours, putting significant pressure on Philadelphia.
So much for that. The Flyers later won, making matters worse.
It took eight losses in their past 12 games, all of which came in regulation. But after being in a playoff spot uninterrupted for more than three months, the Islanders are on the brink of completing a monumental collapse.
“It doesn’t feel great right now but we’re still alive,” coach Pete DeBoer said. “We gotta win our last two games and make somebody earn that last spot.”
Lee said that he asked Brady Tkachuk to fight off the opening draw, with the Ottawa captain reciprocating after Lee had acceded to his request last month in the Canadian capital.
“Want to get the crowd going. I thought we had a great response,” Lee said. “Our guys were ready to go. They didn’t need that. They didn’t need that to get going tonight. But thought we could do it again.”
Max Shabanov was out with an upper-body injury and called day to day. Kyle MacLean reentered the lineup, taking his usual spot on the fourth line while Ondrej Palat moved up to the third.
The Vancouver Canucks will play a significant role in whether or not the San Jose Sharks make the post-season with their matchup tonight. Ironically enough, if San Jose is able to make it to the playoffs, they’ll be one of four teams that currently has the league-high in former Canucks currently on their roster. All four of these teams have yet to officially clinch a playoff spot, meaning that 16 former Canucks’ post-season hopes will be dictated in the next few days.
As it stands, the Sharks currently have four former Canucks on their roster: Kiefer Sherwood, Vincent Desharnais, Adam Gaudette, and Tyler Toffoli. All but Toffoli played in at least 30 games for the Canucks, with Gaudette recording the highest number of games played for Vancouver with 153. Despite feeling like a much bigger part of the team that went to seven games of the 2020 Pacific Division Finals, Toffoli only ended up playing in 10 regular-season games for the Canucks in 2019–20.
Around the rest of the league, there are still three other playoff-bound and playoff-hopeful teams that have four former Canucks on them. The Edmonton Oilers have Vasily Podkolzin, Jason Dickinson, Curtis Lazar, and Riley Stillman (brother of current Canucks prospect Chase Stillman), though the latter has only played in four NHL games for Edmonton this season. The Oilers have the opportunity to clinch a playoff spot tonight if the Winnipeg Jets lose in regulation or overtime to the Philadelphia Flyers, though they would have secured this spot if they'd recorded at least one point against the Los Angeles Kings today.
In the Eastern Conference, one Atlantic Division team and one Metropolitan Division team each have four former Canucks in their organization. The Boston Bruins were in a similar position as the Oilers heading into Saturday’s matchups, with Boston able to secure their spot in the playoffs with a win against the Tampa Bay Lightning. However, the Bruins ended up losing 2-1 earlier today, meaning former Canucks Elias Lindholm, Nikita Zadorov, Lukas Reichel, and Michael DiPietro will have to look to the New Jersey Devils in hopes of a clinch today. The other clinching scenario for the Bruins today would see the Devils defeat the Detroit Red Wings in regulation.
Apr 8, 2026; San Jose, California, USA; Edmonton Oilers center Jason Dickinson (16) and San Jose Sharks left wing Kiefer Sherwood (44) collide after going for the puck in the second period at SAP Center at San Jose. Mandatory Credit: David Gonzales-Imagn Images
The final team with four former Canucks in the organization is the Columbus Blue Jackets, who are also pushing for a playoff spot but currently trail the Red Wings (91), the Washington Capitals (91), and the New York Islanders (91) for the second Wild Card spot currently occupied by the Bruins (95 points). Having said that, Philadelphia currently occupies third in the Metropolitan Division with 92 points, which would make for a much easier target for Columbus, who currently have 90. Former Canucks Conor Garland, Danton Heinen, Erik Gudbranson, and Brendan Gaunce will look to help push the Blue Jackets into a playoff spot in the coming days.
Make sure you bookmark THN's Vancouver Canucks site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, don't forget to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum. This article originally appeared on The Hockey News.
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Dec 27, 2025; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Colorado Avalanche center Martin Necas (88) collides with Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Carter Hart (79) after scoring a goal during a shoot out at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images | Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images
The Colorado Avalanche, fresh off a Presidents Trophy-clinching performance on Thursday, play their final weekend game of the regular season tonight.
After a three and a half month hiatus, they will wrap up the season series against the Vegas Golden Knights, who pay their only(?) visit to the Mile High City this spring.
Colorado Avalanche (52-16-10)
The Opponent: Vegas Golden Knights (36-26-17)
Time: 6:00 P.M. MDT/8:00 P.M. EDT
Watch: ABC, ESPN (US National Broadcast), SN+, NHL Centre Ice (Outside Colorado and Vegas broadcast areas – Canada)
Listen: Altitude Sports Radio KKSE-FM 92.5 FM
Colorado Avalanche
As mentioned above, the Avalanche secured their rightful place as the undisputed leader across the Central Division, Western Conference, and League standings in their 3-1 defeat of the Calgary Flames on Thursday night. Gabe Landeskog would open the scoring late in the first period, and Martin Nečas scored on a pretty play as he skated through the Calgary defense to double the lead in the second period. A sleepy third period (and an extra skater in place of goaltender Dustin Wolf late in the frame) cracked open the door for Calgary, who had a tying goal wiped out due to a successful offside challenge by Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar. Nathan MacKinnon would ice the game on an empty net goal late in regulation for his League-leading 52nd goal of the season, ensuring that Colorado would claim the fourth Presidents Trophy in franchise history. Mackenzie Blackwood stopped 28 of 29 shots for his 22nd win of the season.
With the win, Avs locked in home ice advantage throughout the upcoming Stanley Cup Playoffs. With their position as the top seed in the playoffs now secured, Bednar has the option to rest players up and down the lineup. Speaking on the option to rest some players leading up to the end of the season, he said, “I’d like to see all of our guys play games yet before the playoffs […] If they’re able to play, we’ll get them as much rest as we can in between games, and then some guys, I’m going to try to get some guys a little bit of a breather that, I think, could probably benefit from it.”
Tonight wraps up the three game series against Vegas, with the Avs having won both of the previous two games. The last time both teams met was coming out of the holiday break back on December 27 at T-Mobile Arena. With Vegas leading 4-2 at the beginning of the third period, Nečas and MacKinnon would score to pull the Avs back on even footing, and despite falling behind with four minutes to play in regulation, a goal from Artturi Lehkonen with under two minutes pushed the game to overtime. Neither team scored in the extra session, and MacKinnon scored the shootout winning goal to complete the comeback as the Avs walked out with a 6-5 decision.
MacKinnon remains atop the League lead in goals coming into tonight’s game, having set a career high with his 52nd goal of the season on Thursday. With four games remaining in the regular season, his 126 points ranks third behind Tampa’s Nikita Kucherov (128) and Edmonton’s Connor McDavid (133). Nečas is two goals shy of his first ever 40 goal season, and two points away from his first 100 point season. Bednar indicated that Nazem Kadri will require further evaluation before rejoining the lineup, and he expects Cale Makar to return to action prior to the end of the season.
Scott Wedgewood is likely to start in goal for the Avs tonight. A win against Vegas would see him reach the thirty win mark for the first time in his career.
Projected Lineup
Forwards: Artturi Lehkonen – Nathan MacKinnon – Martin Nečas Gabe Landeskog – Brock Nelson – Valeri Nichushkin Ross Colton – Nicolas Roy – Joel Kiviranta Parker Kelly – Jack Drury – Logan O’Connor
Defense: Devon Toews – Sam Malinski Brett Kulak – Josh Manson Nick Blankenburg – Brent Burns
Between the Pipes: Scott Wedgewood Mackenzie Blackwood
Vegas Golden Knights
A hot start that saw Vegas begin the season with a near identical record to Colorado through the month of October was derailed by a combination of injuries to key personnel: forwards Jack Eichel, William Karlsson Brandon Saad, Colton Sissons, Mark Stone, defensemen Brayden McNabb, Noah Hanafin, Jérémy Lauzon, and goaltenders Adin Hill and Carter Hart all missed time throughout the season. Even with so many injuries through their lineup, Vegas strung together several modest winning streaks through the year, including a stretch that saw them win seven straight games in January. However, they struggled to maintain their winning ways, winning only five games coming out of the Olympic break, and those hardships would only continue through February and March. As the season winds down, Vegas finds themselves tied with the Anaheim Ducks in points (89), but due to tiebreakers, currently occupy second place in the porous Pacific Division.
This isn’t the same Vegas team that previously faced Colorado back in December. They made their first trade of 2026 in January, sending longtime defenseman Zach Whitecloud, defenseman Abram Wiebe, a 2027 first round pick, and a 2028 second-round pick in 2028 to Calgary for defenseman Rasmus Andersson. Leading up to the trade deadline, they acquired depth forward Cole Smith from Nashville for defenseman Christoffer Sedoff and a 2028 third round pick, and forward Nic Dowd from the Washington Capitals for goaltender Jesper Vikman, a 2027 third round pick, a 2029 second round pick.
Vegas didn’t limit themselves to roster makeovers this season. On March 29, head coach Bruce Cassidy was relieved of his head coaching duties, replacing him with John Tortorella in an interim capacity. Vegas marks the seventh stop for the two-time Jack Adams and former Stanley Cup-winning coach. The team responded with a four game winning streak to kick off the Tortorella era, which came to an end this past Thursday in a 4-3 shootout decision against the Seattle Kraken. Tortorella has yet to lose in regulation in his short time behind the Vegas bench, and a win tonight against Colorado could make things interesting in the chase for first place in the Pacific. The Edmonton Oilers, who currently lead the division, face the Los Angeles Kings this afternoon. By the time the puck drops in Denver, Vegas will know whether if they’re in a position to overtake Edmonton for the top spot, or if they’re still chasing them down. As of this writing, neither team has clinched a playoff spot, but the outcomes of both games could change that.
Eichel leads all Vegas skaters in points (83) and assists (58) while Mitch Marner ranks second in both categories (78 points and 55 assists, respectively). Pavel Dorofeyev leads all Vegas forwards in goals (35), while Theodore leads all Vegas defenders in goals (9), assists (29), and points (38).
This is the final road game of the season for Vegas, as they wrap up a four game road trip. Hart, who played the first three games of the road trip since (his first action since January 8), may return to the crease this evening. Hill was the goaltender of record in the loss this past Thursday in Seattle.
Vegas finishes out the regular season with a brief two game home stand against the Winnipeg Jets on April 13, and close out the regular season against Seattle on April 15.
Projected Lineup
Forwards: Ivan Barbashev – Jack Eichel – Mark Stone Brett Howden – Mitch Marner – Pavel Dorofeyev Brandon Saad – Tomáš Hertl – Colton Sissons Cole Smith – Nic Dowd – Keegan Kolesar
The Los Angeles Kings (34-26-19) shutout the Edmonton Oilers (40-30-10) 1-0 on Saturday afternoon to win their final home game of the season. Los Angeles continues to climb the standings and now has a great chance to move into the top three in the Pacific Division.
Strong defensive effort from the Kings, led by Anton Forsberg, gave Los Angeles their best home win of the year against the Oilers.
The opening period gave us the playoff intensity we expected, with both teams fighting for playoff seeding in the Pacific Division. Through nine minutes, it was a very scrappy game, with Los Angeles getting off three shots, while Edmonton getting just two shots up.
Los Angeles amped up its defensive intensity to start and was great at forechecking, forcing turnovers, applying pressure to Edmonton, creating scoring opportunities, and getting physical with the Oilers.
It was at the 12:26 mark when Artemi Panarin forced a turnover and got off to the races alone at the breakaway, scoring the goal, beating Connor Ingram to give LA the early advantage.
LAK Goal - Bread is on the menu!
Panarin with a steal at the defensive blue line, goes in on a breakaway and buries top shelf! 1-0 Kings.
The biggest game that Panarin has played so far has been with Los Angeles, and he's already making big plays on the defensive end and continuing his strong play on offense.
We saw a lot of physicality between the two heated rivals, with Drew Doughty and Connor McDavid getting tangled up and pushing the goal line out of the crease, resulting in roughing penalties for both players.
We knew this would be the intensity as both teams always bring that physicality against each other, especially near playoff time.
The Oilers had a chance to tie the game a few minutes later with a loose puck, but Cody Ceci came up with the unreal defensive stop, diving behind Anton Forsberg to whack the loose puck out of the crease, keeping the Kings on top 1-0.
Turnovers and struggles to get easy shots up were costly for Edmonton in the first period, as LA did a great job setting the tone in their final home game of the season.
Forbserg was once again great in the opening period, saving all 9 shots that the Oilers threw at him, bringing that defensive intensity under the crease for Los Angeles and continuing to show why he should be the starter moving forward into the postseason.
Los Angeles was also great in the faceoff, winning 61.1%, while the Oilers won 38.9% in the first period. All this was setting up an intense second period that the Kings have struggled in all season long.
We entered the second period with the Oilers going on the power play after an offensive interference was called on Brandt Clarke. Forsberg did a good job, continuing his excellent play on defense, denying Edmonton on nearly three shots that almost went in.
The early sequences of the second period were the same as the opening frame: both teams struggled to get shots on goal and couldn't capitalize on second-chance opportunities.
LA was doing a good job creating open shots, but kept shooting the puck wide to the right, preventing the Oilers from capitalizing on their poor shots. The rest of the period would go exactly that way, neither team able to score, and the Oilers, especially, playing with no urgency or physicality.
It’s been a mediocre effort by the #Oilers so far. They need more urgency, more physicality and more pucks to the net in the 3rd. Forsberg has been good but there needs to be more traffic. He likes to challenge shooters so a pass for a back door goal looks to be the best bet.
Give credit to Forsberg for the defense and to the rest of the players for making it tough for Edmonton to score. In the first 40 minutes, neither team shot on goal in double digits, with all shots single-digit.
It was smash-out physical hockey being played out there, with intense defense, and the Kings, recognizing their playoff lives were on the line, were playing with more urgency and physicality than the Oilers.
Edmonton outshot the Kings 7-6, but still couldn't get anything going on the offensive side of things. Everything was so tough for the Oilers, who had to work hard on every possession just to get a shot on goal.
What was working well for the Kings was that they were not letting Edmonton get into transition or get any rush plays down the ice, while Los Angeles was forcing careless turnovers from the Oilers, who couldn't control the puck.
The third period was the same again: Edmonton kept turning the puck over, forcing several opportunities for the Kings to get off a shot, but couldn't convert. Even with LA leading, the lead never felt safe because it was just a one-goal cushion.
The Oilers did have the puck more in the third period, but the Kings did a good job keeping it (mostly to the outside). Forbserg, once again in the final frame, was clutch.
The game never felt like it was in the Kings' favor; despite their incredible defensive effort, they couldn't extend their one-goal lead.
Still, Los Angeles was frustrating Edmonton and Connor McDavid, which was helping the Kings in that advantage in the game.
Los Angeles had an empty net for nearly a minute, but couldn't get the puck out of the Oilers' possession. Despite Edmonton holding the puck for the entire game, the Kings were very strong on defense, not letting the Oilers tie it, and the game ended with LA shutting out Edmonton.
FINAL - Kings 1, Oilers 0!
Anton Forsberg with a 28-save shutout to move Los Angeles within two wins of clinching a playoff berth.
Anton Forsberg was the big hero of this game, recording his third shutout of the season and saving 27 shots against the Oilers, definitely saving the Kings, who couldn't get anything going on offense after their first-period goal. Without Forbserg, Los Angeles wouldn't have had a chance to win this game.
Panarin scored the lone goal in the first period, which was huge, considering neither team was able to score the rest of the way. No one else was really present on offense, but the defense stepped up in this win, showing what kind of difference the Kings' defense can be.
Great win, especially on the day that Anze Kopitar will be playing the last home game of his career. With this win now, Los Angeles secures its 87th point and is now two points back of Anaheim and Vegas for the second seed and three points ahead of Nashville for the final playoff spot.
The Kings will play their final three games of the season on the road, starting on Monday against the Vancouver Canucks at 6:30 PM PT.
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PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA - APRIL 11: Pierre-Luc Dubois #80 of the Washington Capitals skates with the puck against Anthony Mantha #39 of the Pittsburgh Penguins in the second period during the game at PPG PAINTS Arena on April 11, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Penguins went into full coast mode after clinching a playoff berth and their place as second seed in the division by resting several players. All of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Bryan Rust, Erik Karlsson, Kris Letang, Ben Kindel and Parker Witherspoon were held out with “day-to-day injuries” in the meaningless game.
The skeleton crew that did play only managed 12 shots on goal and dropped a 6-3 game to the Washington Capitals. Enjoy some of the highlights of the game.
Rick Tocchet’s club has lost consecutive games just once since Feb. 26. The Flyers have gone 16-6-1 over that span and have allowed just 2.39 goals per game.
With two games to go (both at home), the Flyers have a chance to nail down their first playoff berth since the 2019-20 season (more on the race below).
The Flyers have won in their last four trips to Canada Life Centre while outscoring Winnipeg an astounding 14-2.
They split their two-game regular-season series with the Jets (35-32-12). Back in mid-October, they lost to Winnipeg, 5-2, at Xfinity Mobile Arena.
They hold the final playoff spot (third place) in the Metropolitan Division.
The Blue Jackets beat the Canadiens, 5-2, so the Flyers remained two points ahead of Columbus. The Flyers are three points up on both the Capitals and Islanders. They gained ground on New York, which was blanked by the Senators, 3-0. Washington kept pace by beating a stripped-down Penguins team, 6-3.
And get ready for some more scoreboard watching Sunday. The Blue Jackets, Capitals and Islanders are all in action.
If Columbus wins, the Flyers will have the tiebreaker for now because they’ll have played one fewer game. The Flyers, though, don’t want to finish even with any of the three teams chasing them because they’ll fall short in the tiebreaker of regulation wins.
• Dan Vladar put his previous start firmly in the past by denying 27 of 28 shots against the Jets.
He was pulled Thursday night in the second period after giving up four goals on eight shots. The Flyers didn’t help him much with penalties and allowing a shorthanded breakaway.
On Saturday night, Vladar looked so much more like himself and the Flyers played a cleaner game. The 28-year-old added to his career high in victories with No. 28. His career high coming into the season was 14.
Connor Hellebuyck, last season’s Hart Trophy winner as the league’s MVP, surrendered five goals on 20 shots.
The Flyers stunned the Winnipeg netminder with three goals in the first period. It was a 5-1 game at second intermission after Cates scored a shorthanded goal late in the middle stanza.
Eric Comrie took over for Hellebuyck at the start of the third period and made one save on three shots.
• The Flyers really took advantage of a weaker Western Conference this season.
They went 21-7-4 against teams in the West. But they didn’t just pick on the bottom-feeders. They recorded four wins over the conference’s top three teams. They beat the Avalanche on the road, the Stars at home and swept the Wild.
How about this? If the Flyers played in the Pacific Division, they’d be a first-place team.
• Sanheim has given the Flyers a bona-fide No. 1 defenseman down the stretch.
Over the last 17 games, Sanheim has recorded five goals, six assists and a plus-13 rating. Rasmus Ristolainen, Sanheim’s defensive partner, has eight assists and a plus-16 rating in that span.
Sanheim’s goal Saturday night was his career-high 11th.
• The Flyers return home to wrap up the regular season with a back-to-back set. They host the Hurricanes on Monday (7 p.m. ET/NBCSP) and Canadiens on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET/NBCSP).
Carolina is 52-22-6 and trying to clinch the Eastern Conference’s top seed. Montreal is 47-23-10 and in a battle for the Atlantic Division crown.
SAN JOSE – Depending on how things unfold over the next week, the Sharks almost certainly have played their final game of the 2025-26 NHL season at SAP Center.
A 4-3 shootout loss to the struggling Vancouver Canucks on Saturday was the final nail in San Jose’s season at the Tank, one that was noticeably better than a year ago but not enough to send the sold-out crowd home happy.
Star Macklin Celebrini added to his outstanding season with a shootout goal and two assists, giving him 110 points for the season — fourth overall in the NHL.
Igor Chernshov had two goals and Tyler Toffoli also scored for the Sharks, while Yaroslav Askarov had 38 saves before allowing the game-winner in the sixth round of the shootout.
There’s a chance, slim as it may be, that the Sharks could be back in town to host a playoff game, but that will be determined over the next few days.
It was a strange night in many ways.
Vancouver scored its first goal by Marco Rossi in the second period. As Rossi pushed the puck toward the net, Askarov pulled the entire goal setup down and over the puck. After a short discussion by referees, the goal was upheld.
Askarov gets caught on the wrong side of the net, seemingly pulls it down, but the goal counts 😭🚨 pic.twitter.com/PTTYOjryZs
Shortly afterward, Toffoli put the Sharks back in front with his 19th goal of the season from just inside the left circle.
Vancouver didn’t go quietly, despite trailing three different times.
The Canucks made a surge and peppered Askarov with multiple shots before Jake DeBrusk fired the puck past San Jose’s goalie to tie it with 2:23 left in the second period.
Vancouver then forced overtime after scoring with one second left on the power play and three minutes remaining in the third period.
Here are the takeaways from Saturday:
So you’re saying there’s a chance
Despite their recent stumbles that pushed them to the brink of being eliminated from postseason contention, the Sharks head into their final three games still with a chance at getting into the Stanley Cup playoffs.
It certainly won’t be easy. The Los Angeles Kings currently hold the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference with 87 points, with the Nashville Predators (86) and Winnipeg Jets (82) next in line.
The Sharks have 82. San Jose would have to make a clean sweep of their three remaining games against Nashville, Chicago and Winnipeg, and hope the Kings lose out.
Better start sets the tone
In each of their last two games, the Sharks came out flat, fell behind and never recovered. The slow starts were critical in losses to the Edmonton Oilers and Anaheim Ducks.
Against a Canucks team that isn’t on the same level as the Oilers and Ducks, San Jose looked much more crisp offensively during the opening 20 minutes, although Celebrini missed a breakaway attempt midway through the period.
The Sharks missed a few other close scoring opportunities before Igor Chernyshov wrapped the puck around the right side of Canucks goalie Kevin Lankinen to get the crowd inside SAP Center really vibing.
The Sharks may not make it to the postseason, but they’re not just rolling over, either.
Late in the first period after Celebrini absorbed a hard hit from the Canucks, Chernyshov and Vancouver defenseman Filip Hronek got into a heated tussle, although it didn’t appear that many punches were thrown.
Dmitry Orlov later got penalized for a hard hip check in the second period.
It’s not a huge deal in the grand scheme of things, but for a team that simply could have shut it down for the final week, it’s good to see there’s still some fight – and pride – left in Team Teal.
Linus Ullmark made 23 saves for his 15th career shutout as the Ottawa Senators defeated the New York Islanders 3-0 at UBS Arena on Saturday afternoon. Ridly Greig and Michael Amadio led the way offensively, each putting up a goal and an assist for the Senators. Despite managing only 16 shots in the game, the Sens are now one point away from punching their ticket to the playoffs.
While leading 1-0 in the third period, the Senators capitalized on some good fortune when the Islanders took back-to-back tripping penalties. Jake Sanderson provided some breathing room, whacking home a rebound on the ensuing 5 on 3 to give the Sens a 2-0 advantage.
But the news wasn't all good.
Steve Warne, Gregg Kennedy and Brad Fritsch discuss the rise of Jordan Spence in Ottawa
Sens captain Brady Tkachuk left the game under mysterious circumstances. While standing in the neutral zone near the Islanders' bench, without seeming to take any contact at all, he appeared woozy as he left the ice surface.
Sens head coach Travis Green didn't have any update on what happened to Tkachuk and could only report that he didn't feel good.
So that leaves us to speculate.
For the second straight meeting, Tkachuk had squared off with Anders Lee at the opening faceoff, leading to speculation that maybe Tkachuk had been playing while concussed after the fight.
Some have suggested that Pulock struck him on the neck with his stick, which, after multiple views, I'm not seeing at all.
Cervical vertigo might also be a possibility. It can be triggered suddenly by certain neck movements, and you can see Tkachuk do a hard shoulder check, turning his head to his left. He then flinched when he was immediately surprised by Ryan Pulock jumping off the Islanders' bench to his right.
That's when Tkachuk retreated to the bench, suddenly going from looking sharp to wobbly.
Ryan Pulock seems to make no contact whatsoever. My best guess is maybe vertigo. That quick head turn, combined with the flinch from being surprised by Pulock in his blind spot could certainly trigger something like that. https://t.co/vislXLNf52
Whatever happened here, the Sens hope to wrap up a playoff spot quickly and give Tkachuk and the rest of their banged-up crew some time off if they need it.
The club has now won four in a row, moving past Boston and into the first Wild Card playoff spot in the East. The two teams have the same record after the Bruins lost in regulation on Saturday, but the Sens are now ahead because they have more regulation wins.
The Detroit Red Wings are now the only team behind the Senators in the standings that can still catch them, but a lot would have to go right. The Wings would have to win their next three games, starting today against New Jersey, while the Senators would have to lose their last two.
Ottawa visits those same Devils on Sunday.
Steve Warne The Hockey News
This article was first published at The Hockey News Ottawa. Check out more great Sens features from The Hockey News at the links below:
NEW YORK (AP) — Ridly Greig scored a short-handed goal, Linus Ullmark stopped all 23 shots he faced and the Ottawa Senators moved to the verge of clinching a playoff spot by shutting out the New York Islanders 3-0 on Saturday.
Ottawa is in if Detroit loses at home in regulation to New Jersey. The Islanders’ hopes took another hit with a fifth loss in six games.
Senators captain Brady Tkachuk took a puck up high late in the second period, returned for one shift in the third and then did not return.
Greig made it a 1-0 game with 6:54 remaining in the first. Jake Sanderson scored in the third, and Michael Amadio sealed it with an empty-netter. The Islanders went 0 for 5 on the power play.
New York is now 1-1 since firing coach Patrick Roy and hiring Peter DeBoer as his replacement. Ilya Sorokin allowed two goals on 15 shots.
NEW YORK (AP) — Ridly Greig scored a short-handed goal, Linus Ullmark stopped all 23 shots he faced and the Ottawa Senators moved to the verge of clinching a playoff spot by shutting out the New York Islanders 3-0 on Saturday.
Ottawa is in if Detroit loses at home in regulation to New Jersey. The Islanders' hopes took another hit with a fifth loss in six games.
Senators captain Brady Tkachuk took a puck up high late in the second period, returned for one shift in the third and then did not return.
Greig made it a 1-0 game with 6:54 remaining in the first. Jake Sanderson scored in the third, and Michael Amadio sealed it with an empty-netter. The Islanders went 0 for 5 on the power play.
The Senators got the Islanders started on this tailspin by beating them a month ago in Ottawa. And they may have delivered the dagger to the Islanders season Saturday afternoon on Long Island.
The Islanders’ playoff odds hit life support as an 0-for-5 power play sent them on the fast track to a 3-0 defeat at home to the Senators, just their second shutout loss of the season. The second wild-card spot is now officially out of reach, and the Islanders could be eliminated from playoff contention altogether as soon as Sunday.
The only path remaining to the playoffs is to overtake the Flyers for third in the Metro, but a Philadelphia win Saturday night in Winnipeg would put the Isles three points back with two games remaining for each team. Combine that with an Islanders loss Sunday to the Canadiens and you can stick a fork in the season.
“Our season didn’t end tonight,” coach Pete DeBoer said. “As tough as that feels walking out of the rink here today, we gotta be prepared to take care of business, which is winning the last two games. If someone’s gonna beat us out of that last playoff spot, we gotta make them earn it.”
Ottawa Senators defenseman Jake Sanderson (85) celebrates with the team after scoring on New York Islanders goaltender Ilya Sorokin (30) during the third period at UBS Arena on Saturday, April 11, 2026, in Elmont, NY. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST
While the Islanders had no choice but to be realistic about their chances of pulling off a miracle after firing Patrick Roy and hiring DeBoer with four games left in the season, the dressing room afterward was something bordering on stunned. The urgency that had been missing over the last few weeks under Roy was there Saturday. This loss was a matter of execution — on the power play and in the offensive zone — as the Islanders let a solid performance go to waste.
“Felt like we worked our asses off tonight,” Cal Ritchie told The Post. “We worked hard tonight. Felt like we deserved better. We gotta win these next two to have a shot, that’s our focus.”
Start with the power play, because it has been an issue all season and because it was the central issue on Saturday. The Islanders were not only an abysmal 0-for-5, but had just three shots in 10 minutes of power-play time. For good measure, they let up a shorthanded goal to Ridly Greig, who got up ice after Tony DeAngelo could not get to JG Pageau’s drop pass at the top of the zone, and finished Michael Amadio’s feed for a 1-0 lead at 13:06 of the first.
Ottawa carried that lead into the third period as the Islanders, again and again, fumbled chances and did not so much as look threatening on the power play.
Their fifth chance of the game at 5-on-4 came at 7:17 of the third and may have been their worst. The Islanders struggled to enter the zone and looked hesitant to shoot when they did. It was a lack of confidence personified.
“They held the blue line really well,” Anders Lee said. “You watched our break-ins, we couldn’t get in. … They were on top of it from the get-go, right across the blue line. They made it really difficult to get set up. When we did get set up, we had some looks and some chances. They denied quite a bit coming into the zone.”
New York Islanders center Bo Horvat (14) crosses the puck during the second period against the Ottawa Senators at UBS Arena, Saturday, April 11, 2026, in Elmont, NY. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST
Adding insult to injury, Ottawa sealed the game on its own 5-on-3 power play, when Jake Sanderson cleaned up Dylan Cozens’ rebound to extend the lead to 2-0 at 12:36 of the third.
Amadio tacked on an empty-netter to seal it with 2:31 to go.
During training camp, the common refrain was that if the Islanders had been just average on the power play a year ago, they would have made the playoffs. They achieved average on the penalty kill, but have been entirely unable to do so on the power play, and it appears set to make the difference again.
The Islanders were up ice for much of a match that was played with playoff-like physicality from the moment Anders Lee and Brady Tkachuk dropped gloves off the opening faceoff. They finished every check, and Kyle MacLean came flying after Nikolas Matinpalo for good measure when the Finn got in a shoving match with Matthew Schaefer early on.
New York Islanders center Marc Gatcomb (16) and defenseman Scott Mayfield (24) leave the ice after losing to the Ottawa Senators. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST
They could not, though, penetrate a note-perfect Ottawa defensive structure. The Senators did a terrific job keeping the Islanders to the outside and out of the danger areas all game long. Offensive-zone cycles were rendered useless, and there were no odd-man rushes to speak of.
It made for a game in which the Islanders had little choice but to convert their power-play chances to win.
This team has never found a way to win games with that recipe.
And now their season may end Tuesday because of it.
It appears the Vancouver Canucks are looking to get more of their young players into the lineup ahead of the end of the season. Earlier today, the team announced that they have recalled defenceman Kirill Kudryavtsev from the AHL.
Despite the Abbotsford Canucks’ less than stellar season, Kudryavtsev has played solidly on a roster that has seen lots of change throughout the past few months. He has scored two goals and 16 assists in 42 games played at the AHL level, ranking fourth on the team in points by a defenceman (third of those who have spent the entire season with Abbotsford).
Kudryavtsev made his NHL debut last year on April 14 against the San Jose Sharks and also played against the Vegas Golden Knights on April 16. The defenceman has yet to make his Canucks debut this season but was recalled in October as a result of Vancouver’s injury issues.
Both Vancouver and Abbotsford will play later tonight, with the Canucks facing the Sharks at 7:00 pm PT and Abbotsford taking on the Calgary Wranglers at 5:00 pm PT.
Apr 14, 2025; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vancouver Canucks defenseman Kirill Kudryavtsev (59) makes his NHL debut in warm prior to a game against the San Jose Sharks at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Frid-Imagn Images
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PITTSBURGH, PA - NOVEMBER 06: Alex Ovechkin #8 of the Washington Capitals carries the puck against Ryan Shea #5 of the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG PAINTS Arena on November 6, 2025 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 27: Nathan MacKinnon #29 of the Colorado Avalanche skates with the puck against Pavel Dorofeyev #16 of the Vegas Golden Knights as Alexander Holtz #26 of the Golden Knights looks on in the first period of their game at T-Mobile Arena on December 27, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Colorado Avalanche, fresh off a Presidents Trophy-clinching performance on Thursday, play their final weekend game of the regular season tonight.
After a three and a half month hiatus, they will wrap up the season series against the Vegas Golden Knights, who pay their only(?) visit to the Mile High City this spring.
Colorado Avalanche (52-16-10)
The Opponent: Vegas Golden Knights (36-26-17)
Time: 6:00 P.M. MDT/8:00 P.M. EDT
Watch: ABC, ESPN (US National Broadcast), SN+, NHL Centre Ice (Outside Colorado and Vegas broadcast areas – Canada)
Listen: Altitude Sports Radio KKSE-FM 92.5 FM
Colorado Avalanche
As mentioned above, the Avalanche secured their rightful place as the undisputed leader across the Central Division, Western Conference, and League standings in their 3-1 defeat of the Calgary Flames on Thursday night. Gabe Landeskog would open the scoring late in the first period, and Martin Nečas scored on a pretty play as he skated through the Calgary defense to double the lead in the second period. A sleepy third period (and an extra skater in place of goaltender Dustin Wolf late in the frame) cracked open the door for Calgary, who had a tying goal wiped out due to a successful offside challenge by Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar. Nathan MacKinnon would ice the game on an empty net goal late in regulation for his League-leading 52nd goal of the season, ensuring that Colorado would claim the fourth Presidents Trophy in franchise history. Mackenzie Blackwood stopped 28 of 29 shots for his 22nd win of the season.
With the win, Avs locked in home ice advantage throughout the upcoming Stanley Cup Playoffs. With their position as the top seed in the playoffs now secured, Bednar has the option to rest players up and down the lineup. Speaking on the option to rest some players leading up to the end of the season, he said, “I’d like to see all of our guys play games yet before the playoffs […] If they’re able to play, we’ll get them as much rest as we can in between games, and then some guys, I’m going to try to get some guys a little bit of a breather that, I think, could probably benefit from it.”
Tonight wraps up the three game series against Vegas, with the Avs having won both of the previous two games. The last time both teams met was coming out of the holiday break back on December 27 at T-Mobile Arena. With Vegas leading 4-2 at the beginning of the third period, Nečas and MacKinnon would score to pull the Avs back on even footing, and despite falling behind with four minutes to play in regulation, a goal from Artturi Lehkonen with under two minutes pushed the game to overtime. Neither team scored in the extra session, and MacKinnon scored the shootout winning goal to complete the comeback as the Avs walked out with a 6-5 decision.
MacKinnon remains atop the League lead in goals coming into tonight’s game, having set a career high with his 52nd goal of the season on Thursday. With four games remaining in the regular season, his 126 points ranks third behind Tampa’s Nikita Kucherov (128) and Edmonton’s Connor McDavid (133). Nečas is two goals shy of his first ever 40 goal season, and two points away from his first 100 point season. Bednar indicated that Nazem Kadri will require further evaluation before rejoining the lineup, and he expects Cale Makar to return to action prior to the end of the season.
Scott Wedgewood is likely to start in goal for the Avs tonight. A win against Vegas would see him reach the thirty win mark for the first time in his career.
Projected Lineup
Forwards: Artturi Lehkonen – Nathan MacKinnon – Martin Nečas Gabe Landeskog – Brock Nelson – Valeri Nichushkin Ross Colton – Nicolas Roy – Joel Kiviranta Parker Kelly – Jack Drury – Logan O’Connor
Defense: Devon Toews – Sam Malinski Brett Kulak – Josh Manson Nick Blankenburg – Brent Burns
Between the Pipes: Scott Wedgewood Mackenzie Blackwood
Vegas Golden Knights
A hot start that saw Vegas begin the season with a near identical record to Colorado through the month of October was derailed by a combination of injuries to key personnel: forwards Jack Eichel, William Karlsson Brandon Saad, Colton Sissons, Mark Stone, defensemen Brayden McNabb, Noah Hanafin, Jérémy Lauzon, and goaltenders Adin Hill and Carter Hart all missed time throughout the season. Even with so many injuries through their lineup, Vegas strung together several modest winning streaks through the year, including a stretch that saw them win seven straight games in January. However, they struggled to maintain their winning ways, winning only five games coming out of the Olympic break, and those hardships would only continue through February and March. As the season winds down, Vegas finds themselves tied with the Anaheim Ducks in points (89), but due to tiebreakers, currently occupy second place in the porous Pacific Division.
This isn’t the same Vegas team that previously faced Colorado back in December. They made their first trade of 2026 in January, sending longtime defenseman Zach Whitecloud, defenseman Abram Wiebe, a 2027 first round pick, and a 2028 second-round pick in 2028 to Calgary for defenseman Rasmus Andersson. Leading up to the trade deadline, they acquired depth forward Cole Smith from Nashville for defenseman Christoffer Sedoff and a 2028 third round pick, and forward Nic Dowd from the Washington Capitals for goaltender Jesper Vikman, a 2027 third round pick, a 2029 second round pick.
Vegas didn’t limit themselves to roster makeovers this season. On March 29, head coach Bruce Cassidy was relieved of his head coaching duties, replacing him with John Tortorella in an interim capacity. Vegas marks the seventh stop for the two-time Jack Adams and former Stanley Cup-winning coach. The team responded with a four game winning streak to kick off the Tortorella era, which came to an end this past Thursday in a 4-3 shootout decision against the Seattle Kraken. Tortorella has yet to lose in regulation in his short time behind the Vegas bench, and a win tonight against Colorado could make things interesting in the chase for first place in the Pacific. The Edmonton Oilers, who currently lead the division, face the Los Angeles Kings this afternoon. By the time the puck drops in Denver, Vegas will know whether if they’re in a position to overtake Edmonton for the top spot, or if they’re still chasing them down. As of this writing, neither team has clinched a playoff spot, but the outcomes of both games could change that.
Eichel leads all Vegas skaters in points (83) and assists (58) while Mitch Marner ranks second in both categories (78 points and 55 assists, respectively). Pavel Dorofeyev leads all Vegas forwards in goals (35), while Theodore leads all Vegas defenders in goals (9), assists (29), and points (38).
This is the final road game of the season for Vegas, as they wrap up a four game road trip. Hart, who played the first three games of the road trip since (his first action since January 8), may return to the crease this evening. Hill was the goaltender of record in the loss this past Thursday in Seattle.
Vegas finishes out the regular season with a brief two game home stand against the Winnipeg Jets on April 13, and close out the regular season against Seattle on April 15.
Projected Lineup
Forwards: Ivan Barbashev – Jack Eichel – Mark Stone Brett Howden – Mitch Marner – Pavel Dorofeyev Brandon Saad – Tomáš Hertl – Colton Sissons Cole Smith – Nic Dowd – Keegan Kolesar
